Kingdom Hearts: Rising Dawn
by BlazingCard
Summary: No. 42 lived a boring life with repetitive elements. Of course, his whole life was all just a simulation, when the devious programmer Angelo reveals the truth and traps him in a sadistic game from which he must escape from. Rated T for language. Too many crossovers to classify.
1. The World That Always Was?

Kingdom Hearts: Rising Dawn

A/N: I will accept any suggestions/ideas! Please state them in the review section or PM me.

Kingdom Hearts is the property of Square Enix.

* * *

Chapter 1: The World That Always Was...? -Sunrise Town

* * *

No. 42 was his given name from the day he was born. The human mind doesn't develop until much after birth, so he didn't remember much about his beginnings. All he knew was that he was living a normal life, in a normal house, in a normal city, in a normal world. There was nothing that 42 could dream of that would throw him out of sync with his current life. By taking his priorities into consideration, such as schoolwork, the strangeness of his name was never addressed.

42 lived in a small town with a population of only 100. Because of this magnitude, everyone in town knew each other and most got along. Resources seemed limitless and everyone got whatever they wanted, though the demands were not very high. The town was the closest embodiment of a utopia.

There was always one thing that bothered 42, however. The people of his hometown never bothered to mention anything that happens outside their social bubble. Did anyone ever question what life was like outside their tiny establishment?

The everyday people that he meets seem all too happy with their lives. Even the grumpy old man across the street acted as if everything was the way it is, just the way things are supposed to be.

Also, the actions of everyday people seemed to be regulated by a greater force. 42 noticed how everyone reacted to each other always in the same way. Those who are unfriendly to each other are always bickering about the same things: grades, money, clothes. Those who are intimate remain so. Very rarely does something different occur, and that usually happens when something leaks out of the invisible walls that the town sets up for their internet regarding the outside world. 42 cannot fathom why anyone would block things from the internet. He was told that it was to protect him.

"Sunrise Town was found nearly two hundred years ago," said the teacher in front. 42 found himself in a classroom, with ten other people sitting around him. His school uniform was in a mess from the accident that he faced on the stairs; his tie was untied, and one of the buttons on his shirt ripped.

"The specific founders of Sunrise Town were unknown. However, records show that they were mysterious missionaries that came from foreign lands who settled in an area that was devoid of civilization. Having no one to convert, they decided to cut their journey short and live peacefully… and thus, this land was named Sunrise, looking forward to the next dawn." The teacher closed his book.

42 raised his hand. "Sir, did anyone ever write about where these people actually came from?" he asked.

The teacher sighed and put his book down. "42, how many times have we gone over this? It's not our business to care about what goes on regarding the rest of the world. Our main priority is to ensure that we live a fulfilling, happy life, right here in Sunrise Town."

42 was not content. "But was there anything?"

"No, 42. Nothing was archived." With that, the school bell rang.

42 proceeded to the schoolyard. Children, older and younger alike, played with each other. 42 ran his fingers into his blonde hair.

_Everything is the same for some reason,_ he thought. _They are always playing the same games, always breaking the same rules. Somehow, this is wrong._

"Look at him," said a girl in the middle of the field. "That's 42, the guy who always says these weird things in class."

42 ignored her. He was used to the caustic remarks that people gave him, save for his parents. He was always criticized for his opinions about the town and the outside world.

"Go home, you freak!" said another boy. He threw a blue rubber ball at 42.

42 gave the kids a cold stare. "Your words do not faze me," he said. Ignoring the chatter of the children, he proceeded to walk forward. Something on the other side of the fence caught the corner of his eye. _What a pain,_ he thought. _I have to climb the stupid fence again._ He was reminded of the scars he received from the wires on top two years ago, when he was much shorter and weaker.

The grass was surprisingly well tended for a random patch of land. _At least the caretaker is doing his job._ 42 noticed that the grass was uniform in every aspect, including shape and size.

_What's this? A lever?_

42 looked at the handle of what seemed to be a switch of some sort. It was plainly sticking out of the ground, as if it belonged there. _It's not like it's gonna kill me or anything,_ he thought. _What the hell. Might as well do it._ He flipped the small switch.

Suddenly, electronic images appeared around him. The trees stopped rustling. The wind stopped blowing. 42 looked behind him and saw that everything froze in place.

_What is all this?_

Floating, semi-transparent screens appeared around him. They all had different content, but the first to catch his eye was:

* * *

;;SUNRISE TOWN

;;SYSTEM CONTROL

;;Simulation is regulated by the current system.

;;All properties of the environment are defined as such:

GRAVITY: 9.78 m/s2

COLOR PALLETE: Default

* * *

42 looked over to the next screen:

* * *

SCHEME: sub_urban11

POPULATION: =100

* * *

Much more information was displayed; 42 recognized the content immediately.

_Gravity? Population? What's going on? Why is Sunrise Town defined as some sort of computer program?_

42 turned his head. Every detail of the world around him matched the information he was presented. He shook his head.

_No way. This isn't an anime. I can't be in some sort of simulation!_

"So. You're aware of your predicament, yes?" a cheery voice said nearby.

42 looked at the man who owned the voice. He (was he male?) was barely five feet tall, and wore a black cloak. His face was hidden by the hood.

"You can call me Angelo," he said.

"…What is this?" asked 42. He regained his composure.

Angelo raised his arms. "That's right! That's the question. What is this, really? There are glitches in the coding of some of the people here, because the kid over there keeps saying 'butter' over and over again. Seriously, this is the last time that I'll ever create a town with individual people."

42 stared at him in the eyes. "You… created Sunrise Town?" This explained for all of the uneasiness that he felt throughout his life. This explained why everything seemed to be repeating over and over again.

Angelo clapped happily. "That's right! I'm so glad that you caught on so fast! I guess I don't need this script then…" He looked at a sheet of paper in his pocket. "Ah, oh well. I spent a good thirty minutes on writing this too…"

42 clenched his fists. "I'm in a simulation of a town. What have you done to me?"

"Whoa there! Don't jump to the role of the protagonist so fast! The game hasn't even begun yet!" said Angelo.

"Game?" asked 42.

"That's right! I'm gonna make you play a game! But to do that, I need to get more memory, so I'll have to uninstall this town of yours…"

"No!" shouted 42. "How dare you!"

"Relax, No. 42," said Angelo. "You won't die. You can't die. You're a living being. Besides, I'm right here with you, remember?" Angelo went up to the System Control panels and began to type on the floating screens.

42 loosened his clench. "How… do you know my name?"

"That's a bedtime story reserved for another day," said Angelo. "But I suppose you want to know where you really are. Well, this is what we call a 'Corridor of Darkness'. At some point, this area was abandoned, so I hooked up my computer to this magical place, and voila! All of this dark matter is under the command of codes and data. That's why everything is so real here, so tangible… of course, I heard that somewhere, in another world, tangible virtual reality has already been achieved to a certain degree…"

"Other worlds?" asked 42. "So there are other worlds!"

"Of course there are, you fool," said Angelo. "There are countless worlds out there, 42! Some with environments that you've never dreamed of. I've visited some myself."

The sky burst into pixel-like structures, along with the trees, grass, flowers, and buildings. The school children melted into piles of tiny cubes. All of the pixels then dissolved further into dark-blue masses that dissipated into the environment. 42 suddenly found himself alone in the room, or wherever he was.

"Angelo! What are you doing?" shouted 42.

The voice of the programmer resonated in the atmosphere. "Listen up! We're gonna play a game called, 'Can You Make It to the Flag?'"

Multiple green walls materialized around 42. He saw dark spots growing like mold on the walls, as if something were to crawl out.

"Those creatures are called the Heartless," said Angelo. "They are the wandering hearts of the unfortunate individuals who had their spiritual hearts removed from them. The small ones you see here are just Shadows… they aren't really capable of doing anything. I don't really control the Heartless… I can only give them a slight nudge in the right direction. Once they come out, they are on their own. Oh yeah, you should run! They will take your heart as well."

42's eyes widened. "What the hell? What kind of game is this? You sadistic bastard, at least give me a way out!" At this point, he was ready to accept anything that would help him.

"…Oh yeah. I forgot to open the entrance for the maze. Sorry! Ha ha."

One of the walls disappeared, leading to a pathway.

"Good luck!" Angelo said.

42 jumped away from a shadow trying to slash him. He ran for his life in one direction, hoping that the flag would be close. Sure enough, the white flag was only two turns away.

"Bravo!" said Angelo's voice. "You cleared round one. For your first reward, I will give you a bit of time to catch your breath…"

The Heartless ran into the corridor, hoping to jump on 42. However, each Heartless was hit by an individual bolt of lightning and instantly vaporized. 42 noticed the pink hearts that floated out of them as they died.

"Now for the real stage," said Angelo. "Grab the flag, 42."

42 followed the command. The white flag suddenly vanished.

"Oh, good! The flag works. Now, 42, I will give you a weapon that will let you combat the Heartless."

Spinning pixels surrounded 42's right hand, and the cubes materialized into a massive yet light key with a black handle. The golden edge of the handle seemed to glow slightly. Attached to the back of the handle was a keychain.

"What is this, a key?" asked 42.

"This is the Keyblade," said Angelo. "I know… it's a sword that's also a key. Deal with it. But more importantly, this is a replica that I am working on. The last few Keyblades that I made all dissolved into darkness. I'm gonna have you use that to play the rest of the game."

"Hang on!" said 42. "How does this game end?"

"That's on a need-to-know basis. Which is not now. What you do need now is to know how to use that Keyblade. You see, there are quite a few things you can do with it… besides whacking with it and opening doors. Soon, I'll have you use magic with that Keyblade, but I haven't finished the data for that yet.

"Hurry! I already planted the flag. Round two begins. Good luck, have fun!"

Heartless formed again, this time with unique shapes. One of them was shaped like a big ball.

42 ran across multiple paths, but he kept meeting dead ends. The Heartless had utterly infested the area. He grew tired from vanquishing the obstacles that came in his way.

His first left turn met with a winged creature that carried a wicked sword. _Is this the devil?_ 42's heart was pounding. _There's no way that I could fight that guy!_ He ran in the opposite direction as fast as he could.

Of course, there was no escaping from the demon. It swooped down and attempted a guillotine strike, narrowly missing 42's head.

_This is crazy! Who would invent a game like this?_ 42 turned around and countered the blow, hitting the demon on the head. The Heartless dropped his sword and clutched his head in pain.

42 took this opportunity as a chance to run. However, just as he made the next turn, he saw a whole squad of winged Heartless, all looking at him with a killer intent.

_I gotta get out of here, fast!_

After countless twists and turns, 42 saw a block on the floor. He picked it up and looked at the side. The block was a blue cube, and it had definite shape and hue. On it was a bit of writing:

_Do you want to escape, Number 42?_

42's eyes widened. _This could be my chance to get out of here! There's no other solution for me._ He smashed another Shadow that appeared.

42 turned the cube. More writing was on the next side. It was hard to read and run at the same time.

_This is a special Ether that I created. Not only will it replenish the magic power that Angelo stripped away from you, but you will also be banished from the Corridor of Darkness._

42 turned the cube again. He stunned another winged Heartless, but he tripped and fell on the ground. The cube dropped in front of his eyes.

_Beware! Only use this item when you are prepared. I have no idea where this Ether is, and I only know that I sent it to the Keyblade replica you hold._

42 bashed a Shadow that was on his shoulder.

_You could be sent anywhere! The world of your destination will be randomized. But no matter what, you must make it to the Subspace Core. That is where we will meet._

The flag wasn't anywhere in sight. _Can I really do this?_

"Hey, what is that?" asked Angelo. "I don't remember making an Ether for you…"

_Damn! There's no choice! I have to do it! There's no other path I can take!_

"Drop that box," said Angelo. "or suffer the consequences." In an unknown location, Angelo rested his fingers on his keyboard, ready to make an action.

42 clutched the special Ether and closed his eyes tightly. _It's all or nothing!_


	2. The Capture God is My Savior

Chapter 2: The Capture God is My Savior – Majima City I, Part I

* * *

"No! Why does this happen to me? This isn't fair! Do other gamers have their games whisked away like that?" bawled Angelo. He bashed his keyboard twice and tossed it aside. Plastic keys scattered all over the granite floor.

"Deep breaths, Angelo," he said to himself. "This is the first time it has ever happened. This will be the last time it ever happens. Tantrums are for the inerudite." Angelo knelt down on the floor and picked up the keys. He set the keyboard on the table and began to fit in the missing pieces. _Now I have to go find No. 42. Argh. Another event added to my long to-do list._

He stared at the multiple screens set up on the wall. _How did that item get in the system? Only an external source is possible. I have to investigate this. In the future, this cannot happen again._

He sat down in his high-rise chair and typed furiously. _I hate being short. But being taller would make me an adult, and I don't like those people, either._ Angelo checked all of the areas of the maze, but found no portals or transports of any sort.

_Objects don't just appear out of nowhere! That is a natural law! But wait… could it be?_ He suddenly came up with an idea. _Every Keyblade replica that I made before was consumed in some way. Perhaps this one is a successful one, and someone targeted the Keyblade with the Ether?_ _Okay. Now I have to find No. 42._

Angelo looked around the room. _I'm finally alone. This is what I wanted, right?_

* * *

42 felt his blood boil, and every muscle in his memory overcharged with energy. The Keyblade seemed to have a heartbeat, resonating with his own. _So this is what it feels like to have magic,_ he thought. A light breeze blew over him.

He landed in the middle of what looked to be like the rooftop of a building. 42 looked around and saw tall buildings everywhere around him, along with rows and rows of houses. People were scattered below him, and for some reason they all wore matching clothes, yet each gender sported a different outfit.

_So this is what it's like to be in a big city,_ he thought. _This must be a school, and those must be school uniforms. Who knew that a world like this actually existed?_

42's memories of his own childhood were fuzzy. Though he had access to the internet, his experiences with it were blurred. _They must be fabrications of Angelo's program,_ he thought. Now he had the chance to explore reality.

_But wait! Angelo could be looking for me. I better get to the Subspace Core, fast._

Suddenly, the sound of a door clicked behind him. A student wearing glasses walked out, carrying a device of some sort. _He must be working with Angelo! That thing must also be connected with the Corridor of Darkness!_ 42 thought to himself as he tensed up. But before he could do anything, a screaming girl ran out of the door. A flowing fabric rested on her shoulders.

"Kami-nii-sama! Look! I brought a bento,"she said. 42 noticed her carrying a boxed lunch in her arms, and he swore that he heard growling sounds coming out of the box.

_That girl called the guy divine brother. So people in other worlds are strange as well. But I've gotta stay alert! I have no idea who that guy is!_

The person immersed in his electronic device produced no response. "Kami-nii-sama, why won't you eat?" asked the girl. 42 saw a skull-shaped hairpiece on her black hair. _Is she into this kind of stuff?_ He thought.

The girl walked up and dragged the boy away from his device. "Hey!" he said. "At least let me save!"

Save…? _Don't tell me…_ 42's left eye twitched. _That thing… is a game console. And it's not the type of game I was in. That's an honest-to-goodness game, something people actually enjoy properly._

The glasses boy looked at 42. "Hey, you're not from this school. How did you get here?"

42 gulped. There was no way for him to explain what he had just been through. But there's no other way out. "I don't think you'll believe me," he said.

"After what I've gone through, I'll believe anything," said the boy. He then choked as the girl stuffed the boxed lunch down his throat.

"Well, I come from another world," said 42.

The boy was unfazed. "Let me guess, you're from Hell, and you're here to catch weiss," he said. "Good! You can have my job. I'm sick of it."

"I don't know what you're talking about, honestly," said 42. "I don't even know where I am."

The girl looked into 42's eyes. "Nii-san, I think he's telling the truth."

"Kami-nii-san" adjusted his glasses. "Hey… where are you from? That's not a school uniform, yet you look to be my age."

_Where am I from? Nowhere._ "I'm from Sunrise Town," said 42.

"Sunrise Town?" repeated the boy. "Somehow that sounds like a map in an RPG game," he said. "So you're really from another world. Well, this is Majima City, which is in Japan. Japan is part of the continent of Asia, which is on planet Earth. Earth is part of-"

"Stop it! You're giving me a headache," said the girl. "Anyway, what's your name?"

"I'm… 42."

"Okay, that confirms it," said the boy. "With a name like that, you're definitely from a game. Well, in any scenario, I'll introduce myself. I'm Keima Katsuragi."

"I'm Elucia de Lute Ima! But you can call me Elsie! I'm a devil that came from New Hell," said the girl.

"Keima. Elsie. It's nice to meet both of you." 42 looked into the distance. _This is the first time that anyone ever treated me like this._

Elsie's hairpiece began to glow. "Nii-san! We got a runaway spirit on the loose! She's probably downstairs, right below us!"

Keima groaned. "Alright, 42, here's a quick briefing on runaway spirits, also called weiss. They are annoying demons that crawl into the crevices of a girl's heart. But in order to get them out, that space needs to be filled in, usually with love. So I have to get the girl to fall in love with me. There is a certain divine goddess out there who doesn't quite approve my methods, though…" Keima thought of a girl with two braids and red ribbons, along with a halo on top of her head. She gave a cold stare.

"Isn't that impossible?" asked 42. "I mean, to make every target fall for you."

Keima laughed. He pointed to his device. "I'm the Capture God! I have conquered all galge games in existence! But reality is inferior to the game world, so I try to make minimal contact with others." He pointed to the collar around his neck. "However, I was forced to make a contract with Hell, and now I either do my job or get my head chopped off."

"And if he dies, I die too!" screamed Elsie. She showed her own collar.

"I see. But there is nothing I can do," said 42. "I haven't met too many people in reality, yet…"

"Finally, someone who understands me!" said Keima. "Now, you must hide yourself from the other students. They'll go ballistic over a new person. Elsie's hagoromo can hide the user. It can also change into any form."

Elsie wrapped 42 with the flowing material. "There! Now no one can see you!"

"By the way, who is the host this time?" asked Keima.

The trio entered the door and walked down the stairs. _This school is huge,_ thought 42. _There's more people here than in the whole town._

Elsie widened her eyes. "Oh, no…" she looked at a short girl with blonde hair.

Keima adjusted his glasses. "This is impossible. She was already conquered! Did another gap open in her heart?"

"I don't think that can happen," said Elsie. She covered her mouth.

42 saw more than what the others did, or what Elsie's detector could trace. He sensed a gloomy energy engulfing the girl.

"I'm sorry, Keima… this is my fault," said 42. "I think that… when I stepped into this world, I opened a pathway for the dark entities of my world to crawl through. You see, I'm actually running away from something."_ It's definitely the Heartless,_ he thought. _They must be capable of this._

"It doesn't matter whose fault it is. What matters is that we get the job done," said Keima. "That girl's name is Mio Aoyama. She was my second conquest. But her memory of me was erased, so it's all fine."

"No," said 42. "I have to deal with this." He made a hand gesture to beckon the Keyblade, but Keima stopped him, despite his inability to see him. "Don't get involved. I'm sure you have a way to deal with this, but unnecessary violence will occur. This conquest will drive out whatever you're looking for, and then you can take action."

"Nii-sama calculates everything," said Elsie.

"Alright," said 42. He followed Keima as they walked down the stairs. They approached Mio in the hallway.

"What? More commoners?" she said. "I don't have time for so many of you." She turned around and walked away.

"Damned Heartless!" 42 replied. He stepped up to Mio.

"Heartless? Me? Who said that?" asked Mio.

Keima whispered, "What the hell, 42? You almost ruined everything!" "Uh, nothing, ma'am! I'll just… be on my way." He walked away, along with 42 and Elsie. "Lunch break is about to end."

42 followed them to class and sat on the floor next to Keima. Keima immediately took out a game console and began playing. Everyone was oblivious to his actions, even the teacher. However, no one knew that he was actually in deep thought.

_Her demeanor, her actions, they were just like before! She reverted to her old self! Is this the power of the so-called darkness of 42's world?_

42 was interested in the interaction between the other students and the teacher. They were all so cooperative, unlike his past experiences. Before he knew it, the school bell rang.

* * *

"Mio is the type of person who acts rich," said Keima, outside of school. "However, the truth is that her wealth disappeared when her father died. If she has truly regressed, then she would still pretend to be the daughter of a wealthy man."

"We can follow her home," said 42. "We can gather more information like that."

Keima smiled. "I like your way of thinking. But I already know enough about her. Now all I have to do is to reveal her secret to her, and then I'll proceed to be her servant. This is what happened before, and it should work again. Elsie, go home; when I have successfully captured her, 42 will notify you."

"But I want to be part of this too! I'm not that useless!" Elsie pouted as she walked away.

"Remember! Whatever happens, the goddesses must not know of this!" said Keima.

"Goddesses?" asked 42.

"That's a long story." At this moment, Mio walked out and looked at Keima. "You again, commoner?"

"Commoner isn't a nice word, especially when it's used the wrong way," said Keima. 42 detected a strange sincerity in his voice.

"What are you talking about?" asked Mio.

"I'm saying that you aren't rich. You flaunt your money, but when you go home you return to a small apartment, and your father has died, along with your wealth." _Wow, that came out quick,_ thought Keima.

Mio widened her eyes. "What… what are you… you stalker! How do you know of that?"

"Do not worry!" said Keima. "For now, I shall be your servant!" _The plot has been abridged, but the key details are here! I can still pull this off!_

"…Fine," said Mio. "But you must never, ever tell anyone about what you just said!" She pointed at Keima.

"Of course I won't, a servant will not jeopardize his mistress," said Keima. He took a bow.

"Then, your first job will be to take me home!"

"Of course, of course… ah, let me find a suitable vehicle for you…" Keima turned around and looked for Elsie, but found a pumpkin carriage pulled by a bicycle.

_Damn you, Elsie… why can't it be something normal?_ "Ah! There you go. Get on, madam," said Keima. In the corner, Elsie blocked 42 from anyone's view.

"How long will this last?" asked 42, as Keima pedaled away.

"Oh, a couple of times will be enough. I won't be surprised if only one encounter is needed for nii-san to conquer her. Mio already has an inner impression of nii-san, so she'll fall quickly," said Elsie.

"I'm going to follow him," said 42. "Give me the hagoromo." Elsie wrapped the robe around his body. "If the Heartless, the enemy, jumps out of that girl, I have to be ready to fight."

Elsie climbed into the robe. "Then I'll come with you! I'm sure nii-san will need my help later as well. But please walk slowly; most of the robe was used to make that carriage, so there's not much left. I don't want to slip out."

* * *

"Katsuragi, why are you treating me like this?" asked Mio.

"Pant, pant, the reasons are hard to explain," said Keima. It was hard for him to pedal and talk at the same time.

"Stop the carriage!" ordered Mio. She arrived at the mansion that once belonged to her.

"Oh? Do you intend to visit this place, Mio?" asked Keima.

Mio jumped off the carriage. "Why do you address me as if you know me well? What's going on? What are you really trying to do?"

_No! She's ruining the plot!_ "I don't get it," said Keima.

"You're trying to get close to me, aren't you? I've felt this before. I can't remember what really happened, but this happened before and I don't think it ended well!" shouted Mio.

_This behavior… is abnormal! Somehow the plot was abridged in an abrupt way! This is the work of those "Heartless"! I can no longer see the ending! _"Listen, Mio, I can explain…" he got off the bike.

Dark energy erupted around Mio like a small active volcano. "I don't care! Stay away from me, or I'll call the police! Ahhhhh!" Mio's heart floated out of her body, and a white spirit flew out of the crack in the heart. However, the heart was engulfed by dark matter, and coated the spirit with red-striped black armor. The spirit's eyes turned yellow, and a scythe materialized in its right arm.

Mio fell to the floor in a coma. Keima ran up to her body and shook her. "Wake up!" He stared at the monster in the eye. _So this is a Heartless... combined with a weiss?_

The weiss roared and swung its scythe at Keima. Keima held up his arms and closed his eyes as a response, expecting impact, but the scythe met another target.

Keima opened his eyes and saw 42, standing in front of him, with a giant key in his hands, blocking the scythe. "At this point, I'm ready to expect anything as well," said 42.

"Go, 42!" shouted Elsie in the background.

Keima laughed. "What's that weapon you got there? It's really strange!"

42 jumped back. The weiss roared again, and entered the mansion gates. "This? It's called the Keyblade. I'm not sure of all of its functions, but I'm certain that it can defeat the Heartless." He pointed the Keyblade at the enemy. "It's my fault that the Heartless got here. I'll be the one to get rid of it."

Keima adjusted his glasses. _With this,_ _I can see the ending after all!_

* * *

A/N: The World God Only Knows is the property of Tamiki Wakaki.


	3. Run With the Enemy

Chapter 3: Run With the Enemy –Majima City, Part II

* * *

It's REALLY hard to portray battle scenes quite like the games. Help is appreciated.

Also, any ideas or contributions are accepted as well.

* * *

"The Keyblade resonates with me," said 42. "I kind of understand how it works now." He held the weapon up in a battle position, like a fencer holding a foil. "Keima, it's my turn to play my own role in your conquest. If I defeat the runaway spirit, then you can capture it, right?"

Keima looked up. "Uh, yeah." _Now let's see what he can do._

The weiss howled, beckoning 42 to enter through the gates to the courtyard of the mansion and challenging him. "KILL… KILL…" it said.

42 stepped up to the challenge with no hesitation. However, the weiss had no intention of losing; he struck the first blow, swinging his scythe rapidly in a circular motion that came in contact with 42's face. He knelt on the floor, and drops of blood splattered across the floor. 42 could barely keep up with the revolutions, but he protected himself from the next maelstrom of blades. He charged at the weiss and slashed, denting the Heartless armor on the left arm.

_Something isn't right!_ Keima thought, as he watched the fight from the sidelines. _There's no way a monster like this will fall so easily!_ "42, stop!" he shouted.

"I'm doing just fine!" he replied. 42 was breathing heavily, but it was clear that he was winning the fight. The Heartless-weiss' armor was covered in dents and cuts. Yet the weiss itself did not yield.

"What's going on?" asked 42. "It's not even fazed by my attacks! In fact, it's getting stronger!"

Keima looked at the fallen Mio. _This scenario shows up in RPG games! At this rate, 42 will die!_ "This is just like the boss of a level!" he said. "The more you fight with it, the tougher it gets! It's just started to fight seriously!"

The weiss roared loudly. "KILL! KILL!" The blade of the scythe sizzled with energy, and it lit on fire after a few spins. The armor repaired itself with tiny fibers of darkness, and the new design on the plates made the weiss look much more menacing than before.

"This isn't fair!" shouted 42. He reconfigured his stance and held up the Keyblade. "How am I supposed to fight this thing now?"

"Listen!" said Keima. "The boss may look different, but it is actually weakened! In a game, when you fight an enemy, you can see the enemy's health gauge. That is an indicator to show you how much strength you need to defeat the enemy in its current condition. When the life-bar is full, you need to save your energy; when it is almost empty, you must give it your all. However, in reality, health bars don't exist." Keima stood up. "42! You must make your _own_ life-bar reference appear! You must learn to _Scan_ the opponent!"

42 dodged several bullets of fire conjured by the weiss. "Scan the target? Are you mad? This isn't some kind of video game! There's no health gauge in reality!"

"Reality and the game world are very similar," said Keima. "They're a lot closer than you think. If they weren't, I would never be able to proceed with my conquests."

He looked at the armor of the weiss. _It took considerable damage from my assaults. I need to find a way to crack the armor again! But that expression…_ 42 looked into the eyes of the weiss and saw the killer intent. Behind its exterior, it was desperate to live.

_The fire spells are missing their targets!_ 42 noticed as the flares started to shoot unevenly. _It's losing its focus!_ 42 charged at the weiss and batted away the scythe. He then took a shot at the head, which knocked the weiss to the ground. The impact of the fall fractured the Heartless chest plate.

"Something is wrong," said 42. "It's clearly defeated, but the armor didn't dissolve. When a Heartless is defeated, it usually explodes and releases the heart. That girl's heart is still trapped in there."

"Well, bosses aren't likely to fall so fast," said Keima. "To finish him, you must put your own heart into the attack." He adjusted his glasses. "Normal strikes won't work! You need to _finish_ the target!"

42 saw the weiss trying to get up. He held up his Keyblade with both hands. "This is…" 42 stabbed the weiss in the face. "…the end."

"That was dramatic," said Keima. "I get the feeling that you did it on purpose."

The Heartless armor dissolved into dark-purple smoke, leaving a crippled weiss behind. Mio's heart emerged from the fumes, and it found itself back in the owner's body. Mio stirred but stayed asleep.

"I got it!" said Elsie. She produced a massive glass jar that could easily contain her, and trapped the weiss within it. The jar shrank to the size of her hand.

"I'm gonna have to carry her to my house," said Keima. "You can come, too, 42. It's not like you're the first person to come anyways…"

"Thanks," said 42. The Keyblade vanished from his hands. "What are you going to do with her?"

"I'll take Mio to her apartment. Her memory will be tampered with, and she'll be back to normal tomorrow."

Elsie emerged from the fence. "Nii-sama, there's a weird guy looking for 42," she said.

42 perked up. "What does he look like?"

"I can't see his face properly," said Elsie, "because he's wearing a big black coat with a really baggy hoodie. I think he's just a child, but he used a lot of big words."

"Do you know anyone like that?" asked Keima.

A bead of sweat rolled down 42's forehead. "No… he must have mistaken me for someone else."

The black cloaked person walked up to 42. "Please, there's only one guy in the world named 42," he said. "But at least you're here, safe and sound." He looked at Keima and Elsie, and took a bow. "My name is Angelo," he said. "But you can call me kami-sama (god)."

Elsie frowned. "There's only one god, and that's nii-sama!" she pouted.

"Oh? Do you possess some form of divinity?" asked Angelo. "Would you be so kind as to… give it to me?"

Keima adjusted his glasses. "I'm called the Capture God. I possess divine power over the game world. Don't judge me, kid."

Angelo raised his arms up sarcastically. "Oh, I'm so scared! The ruler of the game world! So "kami" is but a title to you. I was afraid that I would have to use force. But, in reality, I am omnipotent."

"In reality, you are annoying. Halloween is months away. See ya," said Keima.

"You find me incredible? I have been watching your fight all the way through. You have really connected with the Keyblade, 42. That's good. Perhaps letting you out of the game was a good thing, after all. As for you, Katsuragi Keima, you need to send the girl home?" He opened his hand; fibers of darkness surrounded Mio, and her body disappeared. "It is done."

"What did you-" Keima widened his eyes.

"Nii-sama, this guy is scary," said Elsie.

"I simply did what you would have done," said Angelo. "I sent her to her home. Now, 42, it's time to send you back as well."

"No! I'm not following you anymore!" shouted 42. He drew his Keyblade. "I'm never coming with you! I'm never going back to that maze, ever again!"

"Yes you will," said Angelo. "But I didn't specify what time I would take you. How about it? I will give you the next eight hours to say farewell to this world, Majima City."

"42, listen to him," said Keima. "Come with me. We'll talk about it once we get home."

The Keyblade dissolved. "Oh, good!" said Angelo. He clapped happily. "Yay! Success! Now, I heard that there's good takoyaki nearby…" Angelo's dark energy whisked him away.

A shiny, colorful speck caught Keima's eye. "Hmm?"

Where the Heartless armor once lied, there was a fragment of a rainbow-colored block. It was lightweight and thin. Keima pocketed it and walked away.

* * *

_This fits into the broken game disk pretty well,_ thought Keima. _I wonder if the game runs again._

Elsie, Keima and 42 retreated to the Katsuragi household. As usual, Keima locked himself into his room, tinkering with his many game consoles. Elsie and 42 were served tea by Keima's mother.

"So, there are different worlds out there, huh?" asked Elsie. "I wish I could visit one of them…"

"Actually, this is the first world I've gone to, so far," said 42. "I don't know how far away the Subspace Core is, or if there is any distance at all. I think that the whole fabric of reality is nestled in this 'subspace', just like the game I was in."

Elsie stared at 42 as he rambled on about his thoughts. All of the information was going over her head. "Can you… explain it in simpler words?" she asked.

42 chuckled. "No, sorry. I don't quite understand this either."

Keima's footsteps could be heard on the staircase. "42, get up here for a second. There's something that I have to show you."

"Huh? Okay," said 42. He followed Keima to his room.

"Normally, I don't let anyone into my room," said Keima, as he opened the door. "However, this is an exception. I don't want anyone else to see this."

42 walked into the room. The blinds were shut, so the only lighting of the room was the light emitted from the monitors of the games Keima was playing. 42 noticed a blue haired girl on one of the screens. A text bubble was on the screen that said, "Do you want to eat in the cafeteria?"

"You're into this type of game?" asked 42.

"Of course," said Keima. "Only those who have developed the taste can enjoy galges. But that's not what I brought you in here for."

Keima gestured towards the table. On it was a handheld gaming device, a PFP. It was connected to a laptop by a mess of wires.

"After your fight, I noticed that the Heartless dropped something interesting," he said. He opened up the disc slot of the PFP and took out the disc. Keima held up a broken game disc, but the missing space was filled up with a rainbow-colored substance.

"This thing is incredible. It's durable, yet malleable. I could easily get it to fix the game disc. But what surprised me weren't its physical features…" Keima inserted the disc into the PFP and turned it on. The Play Field Personal logo showed up on the screen, followed up a brief animation. Then, after a loading bar was completely filled, the display showed a 3-D list of commands.

"Whatever the Heartless used to get into this world," said Keima, "this is it. According to the data stored inside, this is a gummi block. I'm assuming that there are other blocks like this that have different purposes. But this one looks pretty special – it's got all the information you need on your journey. When I first activated it, the gummi showed me a map of Majima City. I could zoom out as far as I wanted, and the PFP's display would show me what I was looking for. The best part about it is that it _learns_, 42. The gummi block only has information of two worlds: Majima City, which is apparently a world of its own, not accounting for the rest of the planet, and a place called Sunrise Town. I wonder where that is."

"Sunrise Town? That's my home!" said 42. He had almost forgotten the fact that his own Sunrise Town was a computer simulation. "That's right, my home isn't real," he said.

"Isn't real? The location is right here. I have no idea how to even get out of this world, but your best bet would be to go with that Angelo guy. Once you get there, figure out how to travel between worlds. How did you get here, anyway?"

42 thought of the sky-blue cube that suddenly appeared in front of him in the labyrinth. "There was a Special Ether that I used. But it's gone now."

"Where did you get the ether?" asked Keima

"I don't know. Someone… sent it to me. Whoever it is, he or she wants me to go to the Subspace Core. But I don't even know where that is!" said 42.

Keima adjusted his glasses. "Then it's all the more reason to go with Angelo. You seem to be a valuable asset to him. I doubt that he'll harm you in anyway. In fact, leave with him tonight. Arriving to an important meeting ahead of time usually puts the boss in a good mood. He said something about takoyaki, right? The only takoyaki stand here is four blocks away. When you walk out of the door, turn left and walk straight down."

He unplugged the PFP and handed it to 42. "Here. I have plenty of these, so I'll give this to you. I hope it helps you."

42 held up the PFP. "Thank you very much," he said. "Again, I've never been treated this way before."

Keima led 42 downstairs to the door. "Is he leaving already?" asked Elsie.

"Yeah, he is," said Keima. "I'm not sure if we'll ever see him again."

"Come visit soon!" said Elsie.

42 smiled and waved goodbye, and he stepped into the evening air.

* * *

The black hooded figure chewed silently in front of the stand in the middle of the street. The cloak completely covered his body, obscuring his child-like frame. "Why don't you take that coat off?" asked the man in front of him. "It's pretty warm, you know. You have a cold or something?"

He swallowed. "Something like that," he said.

"Well, don't pass it to me," said the man.

"It's not communicable." He popped another ball into his mouth.

42 approached the takoyaki stand. "Angelo, I'm ready to leave now."

The hooded figure turned around. "Already?" He laughed. "Well, that's great news! For being so cooperative, I'll treat you to takoyaki!" He turned to the man and handed him a few coins. "Get me four for him, please."

"Alright, but it's almost closing time," the man said. "Go home and eat it." He filled a tray with four steaming balls, and then he coated it with a sauce before handing it to Angelo.

Angelo got up from his seat, his lack of height causing him to stumble. He handed the food to 42 and pointed to the right. "Let's go that way," he said.

42 and Angelo disappeared in the street corner, gone from the world.


	4. Fire

Kingdom Hearts: Rising Dawn

Chapter 4: Fire

* * *

"Welcome back to the game!" said Angelo's projected voice.

42 was, once again, trapped in the Labyrinth. The walls of the Corridor of Darkness cast no shadows, and he had a hard time determining the shape of the room he was in. His Keyblade was secured in his hand, and the PFP was snug in his back pocket.

"There are plenty of new levels today! However, if I remember correctly, you abandoned the game before you reached the flag of Round 2. Now, being the nice person that I am, I will grant you the chance to advance." A white flag appeared before 42. "Go on! Grab the flag!"

42 did as he was told, and the white flag dissolved in his hands.

"Good! Welcome to Round 3," said Angelo. More green walls sprouted from the ground and surrounded 42, giving him few choices of paths. "This time, you will be taught to use magic," said Angelo. "Run along into the maze; don't worry, there aren't any Heartless yet."

42 eventually walked into a dead end. _A candle?_ There was a stick of wax slotted into a pole. The wax was yet to be burned.

"In case you haven't already guessed," said Angelo, "You will be lighting that candle to pass this round. The Keyblade is able to channel the spiritual energy of the user and manifest it in physical form. Now, your magic, or mana, should have already been restored by the ether you took. That's good. Now, point your Keyblade at the candle.

"Why are you teaching me how to do this?" asked 42. Skeptical of his actions, he slowly raised the Keyblade.

"Don't ask questions! The point is that I am helping you," said Angelo's voice. "I am pushing you to develop your abilities. What more do you want?"

"But making me stronger won't benefit you in any way," said 42.

"Whatever the case, you haven't got much choice here," said Angelo. "Now hurry, light the candle."

42 felt the surge of power flowing from his shoulders to his elbows, then to his wrist, and finally to the palm of his hands. The magical energy used the Keyblade as a conductor to fire a red bolt. 42 was amazed at the candle's ignition.

"Great! You have succeeded in completing this task! I believe that you deserve to advance to Round 4…"

The candle was replaced by a white flag. 42 grabbed the white flag, which dissolved in his hands, as usual.

"Let me explain Round 4," said Angelo. "This time, I have given you another maze challenge. But instead of getting to a white flag, there will be two keys that you will need to find in order to unlock the flag in the middle. Go on, walk to the center of the maze."

42 did as he was told, and entered a room with the flag in the center. Two chains, glowing purple, were attached to the flag. On the other end of each chain were a box and a keyhole.

"When the key is inserted into the keyhole, the chain will disappear. Don't try to act smart and unlock it with your Keyblade; the boxes will set on fire, and you'll have a harder time trying to get in.

As Angelo explained the rules of the Round, green walls were emerging from the ground around 42. Angelo typed on his keyboard from a distant location, programming the specifications of the labyrinth and placed two keys in two random places.

_This is the time to escape_, thought 42. He reached into his back pocket and pulled the PFP previously given to him by Keima.

"Wait, what is that?" asked Angelo. He noticed the small device in 42's hands as he watched him on the monitor.

42 turned on the PFP; after the logo screen showed up, a map of the maze showed up. There were several blue diamonds scattered across the map - they were labeled as "rifts", and 42 interpreted that as a way out of the game.

Meanwhile, Angelo stood up and squinted. What 42 held was some sort of gaming console, but 42 was clearly not intending to play video games here. Instead, he looked at the bare green wall in front of him and stabbed the Keyblade into it. Angelo blinked before 42 vanished from sight.

Angelo frantically typed away on his keyboard. _How did he know the locations of the rifts? He has no subspace fragments!_ He was determined to find 42, and this time, keep him in the Corridor of Darkness.

* * *

42 landed in a place without light, except for the white line in front of him. He touched the line and felt the outlining of wooden doors. With both of his arms, he pushed the door open and covered his eyes from the sudden blast of sunlight.

"Hey, kid, get out of there!" A suited man shouted. "What are you doing in there?"

42 looked behind him and saw that he came out of a closet, but the closet was in the middle of a room filled with different articles of furniture. "Don't damage the merchandise!" said the man.

42 shrugged and walked out of what he interpreted to be a store.

The air had a funny smell; 42 recognized the smell of civilization. _This world looks huge. I might be able to hide here forever,_ he said. But deep down, he knew that Angelo would find him somehow. He couldn't stay here for long.

42 walked along a paved sidewalk. Shops lined the streets, and they were below tall buildings. Little piles of half-melted snow were dumped next to the sidewalk. Red and green lights hang on or across most of the windows. In some of them, 42 saw decorated pine trees carefully placed where people could see them.

"Merry Christmas!" an old man said to him. Something was off about his speech, as if he forced himself to speak Japanese. The PFP in 42's pocket ringed. 42 looked at its screen and saw "Telepathic Translator – ON" written in one of the corners. _How is this even possible?_

"I'm sorry… sir," said 42. "But what is this… Christmas?"

The man's eyes widened. "That's not a good spirit," he said. "Stop playing around."

"Really," said 42. "I'm not exactly from around here." If 42 were to stay here, he would need to be accustomed to the holidays of the world.

"Christmas is celebrated in other countries, too!" said the man. "What's so hard about saying 'Merry Christmas'?"

42 took a bow. "M… merry Christmas."

The man laughed. "Don't get so uptight, lad," he said. "Christmas is all about having fun! What's your name, kid?"

"42," he responded.

The man shook his head. "Well, this ain't the first time I've seen something strange. I'm Wilfred," he said.

"Wilfred. Nice to meet you," said 42. "What is this world called?"

"What? Did you get beamed from another planet or something?" exclaimed Wilfred.

42 looked away uneasily. Wilfred was unaware how accurate he was.

"Well again, that's not the first time this happened. This _country_ is called Great Britain. And here-" Wilfred waved around, "-is the city of London. I came here for the holidays."

"London," repeated 42. "Are there other cities too?"

"Well sure!" said Wilfred. "There are hundreds of them! And then there are countries, and then continents, and planets, and… well, only one person I know of can go to different planets," he said.

42 thought about it for a second. _Japan must be a city this world too… or a country. Sunrise Town could be… a town._

42 heard a faint whirring sound in the distance, as his PFP emitted the red danger light.


End file.
